Hey all i just sent my old volvo radio to one those vintage radio repair
shops to do some overall electrical repair and install an auxiliary input for a cd player/ipod.
I am trying to figure out what kind of speakers to put in the car. For now i just want to
fasten a speaker behind the glove box and right behind the back seat wall inside the trunk. Is anyone familiar with installing speakers in these two areas? I noticed that the overall dimension for the speaker that fits behind the glove box is a little strange compared to other speakers i have seen. The Lower width is wider than the higher part of the speaker.Is this a vintage volvo specific speaker design? Any help would be great,

thanx

I came into some nice (but ridiculous looking) two-part speakers (tweeters and bass/midrange separate) and made some brackets to mount them under the dash out of plywood, outdoor carpet and angle brackets that mount to the bolts that come through the firewall for the hood. The tweeters mount with the top side screws for the windshield trim. Aside from the (fairly unobtrusive) tweeters, the rest of the ugly speakers are hidden under the dash. Sounds good. I thought of finding an old becker or blaupunkt to put in the dash and put the new unit under the seat or something, but ended up just sticking it in the already-existing hole.

I've been thinking about how to instal speakers and a cd player in my 67 for a bit now and I think i have finally figured it out. I measured up the stock speaker on the parcel shelf and theres enough room to instal either a 4x5 or 5x5 speaker, a 4x6 would be almost the same size and shape as the stock. I don't want to cut holes in my door panels. I found a speaker with enclosure that someone had mounted to the rear side panel from a 66 wagon i cut up, this will go under the drivers side attaching to the board near the hood release. I have a wagon so I plan on cutting holes in a spare set of back side pannels for 6x9s I have. My cd player will mount under the dash somewhere, I cut a hole in an old army ammo box for the deck. I didn't want to cut up the dash & rather like the look of the old volvo stereo.

some pics of everything.

Nice looking box!

My only suggestion would be adding some kind of ventilation for the head unit. I worked as a radio engineer for a number of years and heat always was a big killer of audio equipment.

We had a transmitter catch on fire once. That was an interesting afternoon.
--
Formerly 'HearToTemptYou'

Aside from the hole for the wires, I'm going to drill some other holes for some airflow.

I didn't think I would be able to open everything up once the deck was in the sleve but it has just enough clearance, for once I won't be all cramped under a dash or have my hands inside some cramped box trying to wire it all up.

Fome what i saw in an 1800 the wider longer ammo box's fit cd's perfectly. I might bolt one to the tunnle and have a lockable glove/cd box.

Why limit yourself to 6"x9" in the back; you could fit 8"s or possibly even 10"s back there. I think you would want to stiffen a factory side panel; or you could make new ones out of ABS.

In the unlikely event that I ever put some kind of stereo in my wagon I will build a 12W per channel tube amp to mount in the rear quarters, and use a pair of vintage replica Jensen 10"s. Very efficient (and loud) speakers.
I will scavenge the heat produced by the tubes and use it for some side window defoggers...

Bill

6x9's will be fine for what I want out of this car, 8's I would consider. Not interested in putting an amp and subs in it, nowhere to hide the boxes. I'd still do 6x9's in the sides, 5's in the front and a 12 in a box with a good size amp and cap. I had a 900+ watt amp in my 142 with a 10 in a box and it pounded, but that was in the trunk and out of sight. When I was near home I'd turn it down and nobody had a clue what I had in it. I drive my wagon daily and in Vancouver if its in the open some crackhead is going to steal it.

Once I get my 142 back together I'll get it wired up real nice, I like it loud but it still has to be clear and crisp.

I'd like to make new side pannels in the back and rear door as well as the front sides out of 1/8 ply or some other thin wood, stain and clear to match the seats or something nice. If I get around to that, I'll build speaker mounts directly into the pannels.

It depends on the Volvo radio and what mods you're having done but will it end up as mono or stereo? Your "iPod" will be stereo of course. My two door Amazon came with a pair of speakers inset into the lower front corners of the door. They were lo-fi but sounded OK. I personally wouldn't now cut holes in the trim, but whats done is done. I retained the outer metal trims and upgraded the speakers to the same size, 4" approx, Pioneer full range ones. Much better highs and the door cavity helped the bass. If you look in the trunk you'll see a speaker shaped moulding in the vertical panel behind the open/close torsion bars. It may have already been cut out for a speaker, and maybe there will be a speaker trim in the vertical panel, inside, below the back window. This isn't a bad place for an oval speaker and by putting a similar one on the back of the parcel tray/glove box you can make a "stereo" pair. It will sound fine in mono and you can fit a balance control if you like, to move the image to where you prefer. If your new set up is going to be stereo, having one speaker at the front and one at the back is not ideal. Rather than destroy the expensive door panels you could make a new and thicker pair of side kick panels in front of the doors. Speakers here can be tucked away very neatly if you're happy doing a little wood work. They need to be very rigid if you like a lot of bass.
To supplement my two door speakers I found a pair of speakers in boxes that were made for each side of the rear shelf. They used to be very popular and worked well if you paid a bit extra and bought something like Pioneer. They were usually fixed to the rear shelf by a bolt from underneath but I've stuck some Velcro on the bottom of mine which grips the fuzzy pieces stiched to the shelf mat. Again if you're handy with wood a pair of boxes are easy to make for a pair of 2 or 3 way speaker units. Spray boxes matt black and staple on some stretch black jersy covers to finish. Your colours to taste. A couple of
6 x 9's will fill the car.
Of course you could run your iPod through an amp under the dash to pair of thin boxes under the seats. With a 1" piezo tweeter a pair of small mid ranges and a 5" bass unit firing upwards, you'll be able to feel and hear your music. However that's another project..................

I have not replaced the glovebox speaker, but the one above the rear deck is spot-on match for off-the-shelf smaller oval speakers. I got one at autozone for $15.00 after the original fell apart.

It's a mono stereo anyway, so I did not want to go high-price.

It's not a stereo - it's mono!
--
George Downs, Bartlesville, Heart of the USA!

Yeah... It's a Mono Radio.

The synecdoche got me again!